STB Flavored FLACS

Bass is tight and extended. Imaging is excellent with good air. Detail and insight are improved. Choice of tracks is excellent. Thank you for that Friday night treat, Mark!

NOTE: If comparing BOX tracks with 86a tracks, reduce the latter by 9db in order to equalise volumes.
 
I am comparing the new mix of the Pendulums - Tell Me with the older ones. I now have 3 mixes from you: BOX, B86a and TCP. To these ears, all 3 sound great. But I do notice a difference in the latest version over the other 2. First thing I notice is that the mix is not quite as 'hot' on the BOX version as it is on the earlier versions. But I concur with Outside_Looking_in in that the detail and, as he puts it, the insight of the recording sounds more true. As for which mix I prefer it's hard to say. It would depend on the particular recording. If I am in a Sonics kind of mood, the hotter the better but sometimes when I just want to relax and listen, a little 'cooler' can be better.

When I have more time I will check out the other 2 songs but my guess is that the same will hold true.
 
Probably not the proper thread to comment on mastering, but I nortice a HUGE difference in digital transfers that aren't pushing to near 0 peak level. I prefer maxing source input volume from analog to digital at about -8, and allowing for louder peaks to push maybe to -5 at most. A lower level sounds far better to my ears than a level that is pushing peak input level to just below saturation.
Digital listening fatigue is real, and now is quite rampant from the a lot of the reissue oriented CDs I have purchased where an analog source is converted to digital. I know this was discussed here in the forum some time ago, and it caused some controversy.
I prefer to turn up my volume when I want something loud.
 
It's a very apposite thread to discuss mastering. Of course, prevention is better than cure, but I've noticed with any playback system I've treated with STB product (or earlier incarnations), that listener fatigue is the first thing that gets "cured".
 
jeffs11375 said:
I am comparing the new mix of the Pendulums - Tell Me. with the older ones. I now have 3 mixes from you: BOX, B86a and TCP. To these ears, all 3 sound great. But I do notice a difference in the latest version over the other 2. First thing I notice is that the mix is not quite as 'hot' on the BOX version as it is on the earlier versions. But I concur with Outside_Looking_in in that the detail and, as he puts it, the insight of the recording sounds more true. As for which mix I prefer it's hard to say. It would depend on the particular recording. If I am in a Sonics kind of mood, the hotter the better but sometimes when I just want to relax and listen, a little 'cooler' can be better.
Click to expand...

Alack, I couldn't find a TCP version of the Pendelums! But I know the earlier Moon transfers tended to sound "thin", so it's possible I deleted it in favour of the 86a version, but more likely I never had it or it disappeared. If by "hot" you mean with plenty of noise, distortion, and colouration, then I know what you mean: it can be more appealing on a visceral level depending on the style of music. Perhaps it's the lighter bass with the Thales / Etna ST compared with the more prominent bass on the Kuzma / Etna M which leaves one wanting, or in comparison with the much more prominent bass on pre-Moon recordings, even though it's boomy and not as extended.
 
MopTopMike said:
Probably not the proper thread to comment on mastering, but I nortice a HUGE difference in digital transfers that aren't pushing to near 0 peak level. I prefer maxing source input volume from analog to digital at about -8, and allowing for louder peaks to push maybe to -5 at most. A lower level sounds far better to my ears than a level that is pushing peak input level to just below saturation.
Digital listening fatigue is real, and now is quite rampant from the a lot of the reissue oriented CDs I have purchased where an analog source is converted to digital. I know this was discussed here in the forum some time ago, and it caused some controversy.
I prefer to turn up my volume when I want something loud.
Click to expand...

When I record my 45s to my computer using Audacity I try to have a maximum level of -3.
Outside_Lookin_in said:
Alak, I couldn't find a TCP version of the Pendelums! But I know the earlier Moon transfers tended to sound "thin", so it's possible I deleted it in favour of the 86a version, but more likely I never had it or it disappeared. If by "hot" you mean with plenty of noise, distortion, and colouration, then I know what you mean: it can be more appealing on a visceral level depending on the style of music. Perhaps it's the lighter bass with the Thales / Etna ST compared with the more prominent bass on the Kuzma / Etna M which leaves one wanting, or in comparison with the much more prominent bass on pre-Moon recordings, even though it's boomy and not as extended.
Click to expand...

By hot I mainly mean at maximum volume and generally with more (not necessarily clearer) bass and especially more mid-range.
 
Great comments. Of course it is very easy to reduce gain of the file by 3db (or 8db) with an audio editor and save it, if that's what you prefer. It would be exactly the same result if I did it when mastering, or if you did it yourself afterwards. Because even though the waveform of the flacs are normalized, they are not compressed.

(The transfers are done with plenty of headroom, and are normalized after trimming / declicking)

By the way, the BOX files were done with the Kuzma/Etna mono.
 
bosshoss said:
He's playing very tuff jangle then strikes the strings hard on the 4th down-beat to end the last bar of the verse. Very powerful, and obvioulsly planned as the drummer plays the same accent.
Click to expand...
That is hardly detectable on a regular spin. Sometimes these "perfect" rips don't work favourable.
That guit is disturbing to me.
But very interesting experimenting nonetheless
 
I like looking at the files through an audio editor and the Penthouse Five "box files" look finely detailed... and sound finely detailed.
 
BATWING CONTACT ENHANCER (BCE)

Yesterday I made a batch of highly potent Batwing Contact Enhancer. It is a mixture of the most powerful ingredients used to make Batwing and Nuclear magnetic tape, with vegetable oil (Moringa and Olive oils).

As far as I know it is completely safe to use, but I always wear disposable gloves when handling it. It is very thick and does not run out of the bottle, it is the consistency Philly cream cheese, maybe a bit oilier. So you can't spill it. But if you get it on something, you need soap and water, or mineral turps to get it off easily. If I get it on my hands, I use soap and water and a nailbrush to completely wash it off. If I accidentally get it on metal or plastic, I use turps to get it off. You have to be careful because it can be messy if handled the wrong way. But it's incredible.

When I use it, I paint the male pins of interconnect cables, speaker cables and power cables. I only paint the top one third of the tip of each pin. Here are 3 videos for a similar (but nowhere near as powerful) contact enhancer. The videos show how to use their enhancer, and it's also the way I use BCE myself. Except I don't use any inside the female connector - just the male pins is much safer.


It's my belief that that the inventor of the product in the videos got his recipe from a post I made on an audio forum two years ago, listing the ingredients including Component B which I was using but did not fully understand at that time. I can't prove it and I can't be bothered because I don't care. Good luck to them. Their product costs $600 for 10ml. Mine is better and free to trusted G45 members.

If you are adventurous enough to want to try it, please let me know if you intend to use it to make "The Box" (I doubt if anyone will). Because if you are going to make "The Box", then I need to send you a full (mini) jar. Otherwise I'll send you half a jar which would be enough to fully treat 10 or more complete audio systems. You only use such a thin coating and small amount that you'll never use half a jar in a lifetime.

How you use it is up to you, and at your own risk. My official recommendation is that you leave the bottle closed and never open it. Just place it near your amplifier. That way, I can't be blamed if you use it carelessly on contacts and it shorts the connection. :smyle: Which it could easily do if you apply too much.

If you want half a jar, or a full jar, just let me know, either in a post or in a private message. Just one thing - if I'm crazy enough you give you a gift possibly worth $1000 or more, I do expect you to let me know what you think after you try it.

One more thing - don't use BCE on digital connectors such as Cat 5 Ethernet cable connectors. The BCE will cause a short on those fine digital connectors. I have another solution in development to take care of that problem.
 
Change of plan caused by the arrival of an ingredient this afternoon -

There's no way I could recommend using the oil mixture for "The Box" after the new arrival. The box is obviously going to have to be a PVA based formula. However, the contact mixture can still be oil based. But it may be also improved by getting rid of the oil and substituting Stabilant 22. I must wait until the Stabilant 22 arrives.
In any case, the new arrival changes everything. But there is a problem, that I can only discuss in a private forum. Please let me know if you would like access to the private discussion. Will be in a couple of days when my nerves settle down.
 
I treated the inside of the powerpoint my Marantz is plugged into with BCE this morning. I hadn't seen the above-posted videos, but it's pretty much common sense. I dabbed as much as I could into the active and neutral fixing posts (those tubular posts which anchor the wires with a screw) within reason. I didn't treat the earth post as that was pretty much inaccessible due to the TFT/STB surround it. I also treated the modem transformer power supply plug. The difference was only subtle compared to the previous treatments described in the other thread, but bass was a little tighter and high end detail slightly improved. I'll do further listening late tonight to see if I can hear a bigger difference.
 
bosshoss said:
One more thing - don't use BCE on digital connectors such as Cat 5 Ethernet cable connectors. The BCE will cause a short on those fine digital connectors. I have another solution in development to take care of that problem.
Click to expand...

But I bought a very fine brush a couple of days ago just for that purpose. Using it under a jewellers magnifier will make it possible to do it safely.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.